Stair inspiration

We've finally booked the floor man to have our floors refinished. Goodbye black floors! We've decided however to not sand down and refinish the stairs so I'm busy trying to find stair inspiration. Currently I'm leaning towards painting the stairs grey - a nice neutral color.

I really like how classy the white riser looks - I think this is the front runner.

Getting motivated

I have been horrible lately with working out. Even though I'm still consistently going to the gym, I'm not really pushing myself very hard. Sometimes it's just hard to stay motivated, especially at this time of the year when there's so many other fun things going on. 

I thought perhaps some new workout kit might help me get back in the groove. Any tips or tricks for staying motivated?